Obama sends National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. In the wake of the Station Fire, Adam Schiff wants the Senate to repeal the ban on firefighting night flights. Speaker John Perez's California budget plan. Democratic Attorney General candidates Tom Harman and Ted Lieu. Facebook's new privacy policy. Later, A Perfect Storm-author Sebastian Junger's new book, War.
Obama to send National Guard troops to Mexico border
President Barack Obama will send 1,200 National Guard troops to help secure the U.S.-Mexico border and will request $500 million for border protection and law enforcement activities. The National Guard troops will work on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support, analysis and training, and support efforts blocking drug trafficking. The troops will temporarily supplement border patrol agents until Customs and Border Patrol can recruit and train additional officers and agents to serve on the border. Will these efforts help Obama in his pursuit of immigration reform? Will the deployment be enough to secure the border? Is bolstered border security the best way to tamp down on drug trafficking and illegal immigration?
Guests:
Brian P. Bilbray, Republican Congressman representing California’s 50th District (Encinitas, Escondido); Chairman of the Immigration Reform Caucus
Angelica Salas, executive director of CHIRLA, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles
Adam Schiff demands repeal ban on forest service night flights
Adam Schiff, Democratic congressman from the Pasadena – San Gabriel Valley area recommended repealing the U.S. Forest Service ban on night water drops during wildfires before a Senate committee today. Critics charge the night flight prohibition encouraged the deadly spread of last summer’s Station Fire which took the lives of two firefighters. Congressman Schiff called for a congressional investigation into the Forest Service night flight ban in December and believes that night aircraft firefighting prohibition needs to be re-examined, as new technology has enhanced the safety of such flights. Adam Schiff joins Larry to discuss repealing the ban.
Guest:
Adam Schiff, Democratic congressman representing the 29th District
CA Speaker floats budget proposal
On Tuesday, CA Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez announced his proposal to balance the state budget and restore funding to a variety of programs. Perez claims that his “California Jobs Budget” would solve the budget deficit while creating private sector jobs and preventing economically harmful cuts to schools, public safety and the state’s safety net. Revenue for his proposed programs comes from an oil severance tax and funds borrowed from the California Beverage Recycling Fund and from the Disability Insurance Fund. Do the numbers add up?
Guest:
John Pérez, CA Assembly Speaker. A Democrat, Perez represents the 46th district in the California State Assembly
Tom Harman – candidate for Attorney General
Tom Harman, a Huntington Beach state Senator, is one of a trio of GOP candidates battling for their party’s nomination for AG. Recent polls show Harman tied with rival District Attorney Steve Cooley, the presumed favorite, and ahead of former Chapman law school dean John Eastman. But with large numbers of voters still undecided, the race could go any way. Where does the self-proclaimed fiscal conservative stand? Will his tough on crime approach win over voters?
Guest:
Tom Harman, Republican, California State Senator representing the 35th District
Facebook to launch new privacy controls today
Uh, where’s the UN-like button on this thing? Facebook users are up in arms over newly launched settings that make personal data submitted through the site more readily accessible to advertisers, third party apps and public sites like Google. Indignant users have set May 31 as Quit Facebook Day in protest of the site’s opaque policy. Now, Facebook is responding with new privacy controls. Will users have more control over their own data? Is this a real status update or just status quo? If Facebook doesn’t get it right this time, will customers un-friend the social network giant? Can we reasonably expect that any information shared online stay private?
Guest:
Renay San Miguel, Reporter and Columnist for TechNewsWorld.com. Former technology reporter for CNN, CNN Headline News and CNBC.
Ted Lieu – candidate for Attorney General
Next up on the Dem candidates for AG hot seat: Assemblyman Ted Lieu, who has positioned himself as the leading consumer advocate in the race for the Democratic nomination for Attorney General, specifically in the mortgage industry. Where else does Lieu see room for the AG to increase consumer protections? Where does he stand on three strikes laws and medical marijuana enforcement?
Guest:
Ted Lieu, Democratic candidate for Attorney General; California State Assemblyman representing the 53rd Assembly District (since September 2005)
Images of Afghanistan: Sebastian Junger's take on War
From the best-selling author of The Perfect Storm, comes a new book chronicling the intensity of war as experienced by one platoon based in Afghanistan. War is Sebastian Junger’s account of what soldiers feel in combat – the adrenaline-filled chaos of an ambush, the no-holds-barred risks soldiers take to protect their own, the mind-numbing anticipation of waiting for battle. Junger joins Larry in studio to talk about the lives of soldiers, violence and American defeat.
Guest:
Sebastian Junger, author of War (12 Press). Junger’s previous books include The Perfect Storm and A Death in Belmont. He is also a reporter for Vanity Fair.